Monthly Archives: May 2011

Bossypants by Tina Fey

American Literature 3 Comments

Synopsis: Tina Fey’s memoir of her rise from nerdy little Philly girl to comedy superstar and member of the showbiz power elite. Review: Naturally, I opted for the audiobook version of Bossypants since Tina Fey was doing the reading herself. Yay! Bonus: it included the full version of the Katie Couric/Sarah Palin interview sketch that she and Amy Poehler did for SNL. Unbonus: it does not include the worldbeatingly awesome rap that Amy Poehler did when Sarah Palin actually visited SNL (what Fey labels a…

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Ship of Magic by Robin Hobb (The Liveship Traders, Book 1)

American Literature 2 Comments

Synopsis: Althea Vestrit always thought she’d captain her family’s liveship, the Vivacia, newly quickened by the death of her father, but her sister’s husband’s machinations strip it from her hands, delivering the ship into a situation that threatens to break her mind, which puts her crew in mortal danger. Review: I loved returning to Bingtown and my beloved Althea Vestrit in this re-read (actually a listen) of Ship of Magic. Few things have captured my imagination as Hobbs liveships, sailing vessels with figureheads who can…

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Golden Fool by Robin Hobb (The Tawny Man, Book 2)

American Literature

Synopsis: FitzChivalry, the bastard, returns to Buckkeep to train Prince Dutiful in the Skill, even as tensions rise among the various factions of people who practice the despised Wit animal magic–including Prince Dutiful. Review: Golden Fool takes the story of Fitz and the Fool into a whole new direction, reminding me why I have always praised Hobb for her willingness to take risks. Not much more I can say without offering up too many spoilers for previous books, but if you’ve made it this far…

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The Inheritance and Other Stories by Robin Hobb and Megan Lindholm

American Literature

Synopsis: A set of stories by two authors sharing one body: edgy sci fi by Megan Lindholm and longer fantasy by Robin Hobb. Review: I really enjoyed almost all of the stories in The Inheritance. I liked returning to the Rain Wilds in Hobb’s stories, especially because these stories were longer. But the Lindholm stories have an edge to them that I miss in Hobb’s works, and I yearn to see more of that anger and complexity in the Six Duchies stories. This is definitely…

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Fool’s Errand by Robin Hobb (The Tawny Man)

American Literature

Synopsis: Bastard assassin Fitz is brought out of hiding by King Shrewd’s fool, now living as haughty Lord Golden, in order to find missing Prince Dutiful, believed to have been seduced by a group of outlaws practicing an extreme form of beast magic. Review: Fool’s Errand picks up about 15 years after the end of the Farseer Trilogy, with the events of the Liveship Traders books happening in between. I remember thinking that this series was much weirder than the relatively straightforward Farseer epic. I’m…

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Sheepish by Catherine Friend

American Literature

Synopsis: Subtitled: “Two Women, Fifty Sheep, and Enough Wool to Save the Planet.” Review: Sheepish is simply adorable, a sweet memoir that will delight and please anyone who loves knitting, women, candor, humor, and sheep. There’s even a meditation on the environmental pros and cons of wool vs. artificial fibers. My only wish is that it came with patterns and pictures, but maybe someday she’ll feature some on her website.

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Sherry and Narcotics by Nina-Marie Gardner

American Literature 2 Comments

Synopsis: A young American woman who can’t stay sober moves to Manchester to live near the internet boyfriend who can only see her on Saturday nights. Review: I feel like I’ve read Sherry and Narcotics a million times, only with different names and in different cities. I’m not saying the book lacks literary merit, only that this particular kind of semi-autobiographical sexy self-destructiveness seems to have a perennial appeal. 10 years ago I read Morvern Callar and thought it was deep; now I just feel…

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